Windows Lite Web Server using EasyPHP

Installing a CubeCart store onto a local drive (laptop, USB thumb drive/memory stick or desktop) allows you to demo or customize the installation without the need for an Internet connection and a hosting server.

This method, compared to the other 'Web Server' options in the Appendix, is a quick 'lite' method of achieving a development environment using an open source application which manages the bulk of the requirements, called 'EasyPHP'. Other applications such as 'phpMyAdmin' can also be used with EasyPHP.

Download EasyPHP (www.easyphp.org) and install it on the device or drive you wish to use. This can also be a removable memory stick.

After you see the above screenshot, find the following folder:

Desktop > My Computer > target drive > EasyPHP > www

The 'www' folder was created in the EasyPHP directory when EasyPHP was installed. It will currently be empty.

Your next step will be to place CubeCart into the 'www' folder. In that 'www' folder, create a new folder called whatever you wish. We will name ours 'cc'.

Download and unzip a copy of CubeCart. You will note it includes a folder called, 'upload'.

Normally, to install CubeCart on your web site, you would upload the contents of the upload folder to your remote server on the Internet. But EasyPHP, on your local disk or device, is now going to take the place of that remote server.

Copy the entire contents of the Cubecart 'upload' folder (not the upload folder itself) into the new 'cc' folder we created in the 'www' folder on your local drive or device.

If you are installing on a USB device, the way to access it would be to plug the USB device into a computer, go to the drive where you have installed EasyPHP, open EasyPHP and wait a few seconds until the system tells you that both Apache and MySQL have started.

Then open a browser and in the address field type http://127.0.0.1/cc/ and hit Enter or Go.

CubeCart will open to Step One of the installation process. Proceed in the usual way.

Whenever you want to revisit your installation, you can click on a bookmark for the CC installation but remember you must first open EasyPHP, then the browser. If you do not, you will get a not found error message.

Installing Administration Tools

Please note the links take you to the installation instructions for the full development environment, therefore remember to take into account the different file paths.

Both tools have their benefits, however phpMyAdmin may be more familiar to a lot of people as it is the administration tool of choice for a lot of IT professionals and hosting providers.

phpMyAdmin

The software can be downloaded from www.phpmyadmin.net/home_page/downloads.php. The best file to download for beginners wanting a UK version 'english.zip'. However the other versions are just as good, they are just packaged differently.